Saturday's A-League Sydney derby at the Sydney Cricket Ground "marks the start of a challenging period" for Sydney FC and its supporter base, according to Vince Rugari of the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD. The club's home ground, Allianz Stadium, is "due to be demolished" in January and will not be replaced until at least '22. Sydney will "rotate through three different venues" until then -- the SCG (four matches), Jubilee Oval in Kogarah (seven) and Leichharddt Oval (two). The Western Sydney Wanderers "know exactly how discomforting ground-hopping can be." The club is "still scattered" as it waits for the new Western Sydney Stadium to be completed and will play its home games this season at Spotless Stadium and ANZ Stadium. The move away from Parramatta will "pay off handsomely" in the long term, as it will for Sydney FC, but it has been a problem in the short term. Sydney FC captain Alex Brosque "could feel the difference" playing away to Western Sydney last season. But he does not think Sydney will lose its "edge," primarily because the grounds it will be stationed at are "better suited to football." Brosque: "It is what you allow it to be. The Wanderers went from a stadium that was perfect for football. ... all of a sudden, they went from that into a 80,000-seat stadium at ANZ or even Spotless, which is an AFL ground. It just didn't have the same feel" (SMH, 10/23).
